The High Lord's Secret
by VividFantasy
Summary: Sometimes, all it takes is an unexpected change of perspective for everything else to change as well... And things would have gone a completely different way. [AU SL]
1. Chapter 1

Sonea stepped out into the warm afternoon breeze. Her classmates, wrapped up in an agitated chatter, spilt out of the University behind her as she stopped on the staircase, hesitating. A weird mixture of both relief and dread were struggling within her.

Relief, because her late afternoon classes had just been cancelled. Apparently, Lord Elben had done an experiment on himself with a new herbal mixture he had thought might contain great healing power, but instead had ended up sick and was now being treated at the Healers' Quarters. Since cancellation of lessons due to a sick teacher was a more than rare occurrence at a University for magicians, the news had instantly flared a giddy excitement among Sonea's fellow Novices, and the mood had quickly caught up on her as well.

Nevertheless, it hadn't been able to chase away the dread weighing heavily on her heart. A long afternoon now lay ahead of her. Hours and hours in which she had to avoid the High Lord and his Residence somehow.

Despite the sun warming her face, a chill ran down her spine and she shuddered. From the corner of her eye, she glanced at the low, dark building huddled amongst the trees where the forest started while she willed her legs to descend the vast stairway of the university. Better not to appear to be looking that way. Who knew, _he_ might be watching.

It took all her willpower to suppress another shudder. Reaching the bottom of the stairs, she hesitated again, and her chest heaved with a heavy sigh as she looked around indecisively. Where to?

She looked up at the sky. Not a single cloud was disturbing the perfect blue spreading towards the horizon. Up to the spring then, she decided. She could go through her notes of Lord Elben's latest Healing lectures there, in order to make up for the lost practice they would have done today. After all, her midterms were starting next week.

Her feet seemed to find the all too familiar path past the older magicians' Residences, through the forest and up the hill on her own, but Sonea forced herself to stay focused on her quick, rhythmic steps in order to prevent her mind from wandering.

Right now, she just didn't want to think. She couldn't even say why, but the feeling of tension that had caught her when leaving the University grew more tangible with every step she took.

She couldn't help a sense of foreboding, that something bad was about to happen… but, no. Again, she willed her train of thoughts to stop. She shook her head firmly and clutched the box with her notes a little tighter to her chest. This was hilarious. It seemed her constant fear of the High Lord was slowly leading her into paranoia. Her expression turned grim.

And then, her face fell. She skidded to an abrupt halt and almost dropped her box, her heart leaping into her mouth. Right there beside the spring, in the shadow of the very tree where she always used to study, he sat, his back leaning against the trunk.

His face was covered in darkness, but the black robes choked off every tiny spark of hope she'd dare to nurture that it was anyone but him.

The center of her every nightmare.

High Lord Akkarin.


	2. Chapter 2

_**Actually, everything I've written so far was supposed to be in Chapter 1 - and even more that is about to come. But as I'm writing, I somehow end up breaking it into smaller parts. If I should make longer chapters, let me know! Though don't forget, it'll take longer for me to post then ;)**_

_**I've been asked by (Thanks for your review! ^_^) about the time frame of this fanfic. Well, it is placed somewhere between Akkarin claiming Sonea's guardianship, and him taking her to the slave and showing her how to read his mind in order to prove his story. So, she's still dead-on scared of him.**_

_**Leave a review, I'd appreciate any thoughts, comments and questions!**_

**Chapter 2**

For a brief moment, Sonea felt as if the world had stopped. Then it started spinning around her way too fast, leaving her mind blank and her head feeling dizzy. She tried to swallow, but her mouth had gone so dry she simply couldn't.

What was he doing here? He must have been expecting her. But how had he known that she was about to come here? Her body betrayed her with yet another shudder. The High Lord knew of ways she didn't even want to think about.

He hadn't moved yet, though he was looking at her directly, regarding her in silence from across the small meadow. Collecting herself, she bowed.

"High Lord."

Her voice was barely more than a mutter, and it felt as if her tongue had been replaced by a piece of sand paper scratching against her gums.

Still, no reaction.

Starting to feel intimidated, she resisted the urge to shift from one foot to the other. If it was his intention to make her uneasy, she would not allow him the satisfaction of knowing he'd succeeded. She jutted her chin forward in a stubborn manner.

Then, he moved, his head falling to the side and a strained moan escaping his lips.

Sonea froze in place, her heartbeat picking up a rapid pace again.

"High Lord?"

She barely recognized her own voice, coming out several pitches too high.

Still no reaction. Had he been injured? Her mind started racing. If so, could she take advantage of the situation? How? Could she kill him?

_Should_ she kill him?

And even if he was badly wounded, who said that he couldn't still fight her nevertheless? The High Lord had been one of the Guild's strongest magicians even before he had started using black magic. Who was to say how strong he was now, even when he seemed to be weak?

Suddenly his head jerked to the other side, and he moaned again.

Regardless of what she decided to do, first she had to find out what was wrong with him. Ever so slowly, keeping her eyes trained on him, she bent down and carefully set her box on the ground. Then, straightening again, she advanced on him, one careful step at a time.

"High Lord. What has happened?"

Her voice sounded firmer now, but again he didn't react.

Was this a trap? As the thought crossed her mind Sonea stopped abruptly, her gaze flickering around in search for anyone hidden in the bushes. But just then, she had stepped into the shadows of the trees and could finally make out the High Lord's face.

His eyes were closed.

His expression was strained, but there were no signs of an injury.

His chest was heaving heavily, but evenly.

The High Lord was asleep.


	3. Chapter 3

_**From the reviews (a huge THANK YOU! To those who wrote one) I gather that I have raised the expectation that I would merely re-write the ending of THL. I hope I didn't disappoint anyone by not doing so. The thing is, when I started writing this story, I wasn't really sure about it myself what was bugging me about the original version, so I wasn't quite clear about where I wanted to take this. But, even though I didn't have time to write the last couple of days (yeah, better get used to slow updates...) I spent a lot of time thinking about what was nagging at me and where I want this story to go, and now I have a fairly clear idea about what I want to do differently than the books. I think it's too early to give anything away, but let's just say it's not only the fact that Akkarin died in the end that doesn't feel quite right for me. **_

**_But for now, that's enough of blah blah and now let's get on with the story ;)_**

**_Again, I'd appreciate any thoughts, comments and ideas, and also corrections on my language and grammar since I'm not a native speaker. So please, keep those reviews coming! :)_**

**Chapter 3**

Sonea couldn't help but stare in stunned silence. She had no idea what to do. There weren't even possible options forming in her head.

Suddenly, she remembered that for the last three days, it had always been Takan who had opened the door for her when she had returned to the Residence late at night. The High Lord had never been present. Not even wanting to think about it, she hadn't asked the servant any questions about his master's whereabouts.

A thin line appeared on Sonea's forehead she examined the High Lord's features with a measured gaze, well aware of the fact that never before had she dared to look at him that closely. Dark shadows circled his eyes, and his skin had a sickly ashen, almost yellowish tone. His obvious exhaustion confirmed her speculations about him not getting much sleep the last few nights.

Still, that only explained the fact that he was asleep, not the fact that he was _here_. Had he been expecting her, but unwillingly fallen asleep from exhaustion while waiting? Which brought her back to the question how he could possibly have known about the classes being cancelled on such short notice… unless he had had a hand in there.

Sonea's frown deepened. Even for the High Lord, this seemed to be too far of a stretch for her.

So, the other option was that he'd just come here seeking out a quiet place in order to rest, unseen by the Guild. Did this mean he came to the spring frequently? How come she'd never bumped into him before, then?

But, and the thought made her shift her weight uneasily, she shouldn't even be here right now. At this time of day, she was usually still attending lectures at the University. He could come here every day, and she wouldn't even have noticed.

Suddenly, she felt like an intruder, invading the High Lord's private space. She had never seen him so, so… vulnerable before, and it was obvious that he didn't want to be seen like this either. For all of the Guild, the High Lord was as solid as a rock, never wavering in the surge. Yet here he was, hiding away from the other magicians when seeking a moment of rest. The thought made her almost feel guilty.

It had taken Sonea mere seconds to process all of this, all the while her gaze carefully settled on the dark robed figure huddled at the base of the tree. And so she witnessed as suddenly, a wave of agony contorted the sleeping features and twisted his limbs as a strained whimper brushed past the High Lord's slightly parted lips.

A wave of fear washed over his novice, leaving her rigid and staring in horror. The High Lord was obviously having a nightmare, and she shouldn't be witnessing this. A feeling that she should not be here took such a strong hold of her that she had to force herself to turn and walk away steadily and quietly instead of just running for her life, like her feet wanted to. She strode across the meadow, almost forgetting to grab her box as she passed it, and hastily started to clamber down the rocky hill.

It wasn't until she reached the woods again that she dared to break into a run.

* * *

"NO!"

Akkarin woke with a start, his heart beating rapidly against his ribs. The grass was shaking beneath his hands.

Another nightmare.

The High Lord closed his eyes again and leaned back against the trunk of the tree, forcing himself to take deep, steadying breaths until he felt his heart rate slow. Refraining from reopening his eyes, he frowned. He hadn't planned to fall asleep. Hopefully he hadn't been out long enough that his absence at the Guild had been noticed.

His sharp ears caught the sound of a single stone clattering down the steep slope of the hill, and his head jerked up, his dark eyes snapping into focus, the nightmare forgotten. Slowly and with measured movements, Akkarin rose to his feet, straightening into the intimidating posture the High Lord was known for, his eyes still fixed on the edge of the hill.

No more sound was to be heard.

Taking deliberate steps, he made his way across the meadow, his alert eyes scanning the hillside, but detecting nothing out of order. In the corner of his eye, he caught a movement and zoomed in on the woods below.

With his eyes, he followed his Novice sprinting through the underbrush, and his frown deepened.

Why wasn't she attending her classes?


	4. Chapter 4

_**Alright, so here we go again! First of all, I want to thank everyone who took the time to write a review, especially the guest reviewers who I couldn't thank in person. It seemed the unanimous consensus was that my chapters should be longer. So, I tried. Again, I'd appreciate all kinds of feedback on this chapter, but this time I'd be especially thankful for your guys judgement whether the length of the chapter is okay now, or whether I should make the following ones longer still. I hope you'll enjoy reading it nevertheless!**_

**Chapter 4**

Sonea clutched her box tightly to her chest, well aware of the fact that each following step became more reluctant than the last one as her feet carried her through moonlit darkness towards the High Lord's Residence.

Contradictive feelings struggled within her, resulting in her heart fluttering at an unsteady pace; she's never been either so reluctant, nor so eager to return to her Guardian's estate. Since the Spring was obviously not to be visited by her again today, she'd spent the rest of the day hiding around secluded places of the University park, trying to get wrapped up in her reading but failing miserably.

She'd felt like her blood was burning with adrenaline that her body just didn't stop to produce, leaving her fickle and restless. The harder Sonea had tried to focus on the book in her lap, the more often her mind seemed to wander back to the scene she had encountered earlier. Again and again, she had caught herself visualizing the High Lord's agonized, sleeping face, wondering what it meant. A question had formed in her thoughts, sticking there like a hook in her flesh: Was this how the Black Magician paid for his deeds? Was there a price for practicing the forbidden? Did the souls of the lives he'd taken haunt him in his sleep?

Yet still, she couldn't help an indistinct feeling scratching at the edge of her heart, which after some struggling she'd eventually managed to name, or so she thought:

Sympathy.

Deep down, she knew that after what she'd witnessed today, she'd never look at the High Lord the same again. He had lost some of his almost inhuman aloofness to her, for now she knew that he had an utterly mundane weakness, just like everyone else.

And now she knew for certain that even the High Lord knew fear. And someone who knew fear wasn't beyond being beaten.

Yet, she felt like her intrusion of his privacy couldn't go unpunished. On the one hand, she was rationally well aware of the fact that he simply could not know of her presence at the Spring earlier today. On the other, though, her slightly altered perspective of him hadn't put an end to her irrational fear of him somehow always knowing about everything.

Sonea took a deep breath, bracing herself, determined to not give the situation any further thought and rather get the encounter over with. As always, the door swung open at the lightest touch of her hand.

She stepped over the threshold, and the door closed in her back.

"Good evening, Sonea."

Looking up, she found her Guardian seated in his usual spot across the room, his faint globe light dimly illuminating the room, but casting secretive shadows across his face. Not even realizing what she was doing, she took a step closer, narrowing her eyes in order to briefly examine his features, curious to see whether what she'd encountered there this afternoon was still visible. Then, she bowed.

"Good evening, High Lord."

From the glimpse she'd caught, she could tell that he still looked utterly tired, not to say worn out. Thinking about it, hadn't there even been a slightly weary undertone in his voice as he spoke? Unbidden, that spark of sympathy surfaced again and she frowned, annoyed with herself. There was no space for sympathy here. She was facing a Black Magician, after all. If he was already paying for his deeds, all the better. One day, she'd ensure he'd be paying even more.

"I take it your afternoon lecture has been cancelled today. Lord Elben is already fully recovered, though. There will be no further disruption of your schedule."

Sonea couldn't help but flinch, her eyes widening with the slightest hint of shock and fear as she quickly peeked up at him again.

Did he know?

No, she reasoned with herself, there was no way that he could. He was merely pointing out that he was keeping track of her studies.

"I am glad to hear that Lord Elben is doing well again. He wanted to go through one more experiment with us before the midterms next week."

She was surprised at how steady and firm her own voice sounded. Again, she quickly scanned his features. Had the High Lord noticed a change in her? Casting her eyes back down again, she mused whether she'd imagined the slight frown creasing his forehead and the faintly disapproving set of his lips. She couldn't be sure, though. For all she knew he always wore that expression. Suddenly, she was well aware of the fact that she'd never managed to meet his eyes before. She resisted the urge to take another look. In case his suspicion had already been raised, she didn't have to foster it any further.

After a moment of silence, the High Lord nodded.

"You may go, Sonea."

And, added in a softer tone that she didn't think she'd ever heard of him before, "Get some rest."

Sonea managed another gawky bow, then scurried up the stairs and into the illusionary shelter of her luxurious room.

* * *

Akkarin's dark, brooding gaze followed his Novice as she slipped away to her bedroom. His worst suspicions had just been confirmed, and one could say that he was the opposite of pleased. Slowly, he rose to his feet and walked over to the cabinet, pouring himself another glass of wine while his thoughts were occupied with sorting through the events of the day.

When he'd first seen Sonea dashing through the woods, he had thought that she was fleeing Regin and his followers, who had managed to ambush her somehow between classes. Curious, he had watched but not even detected the slightest shimmer of a brown robe, nor had his senses picked up any unusual magical activity in the closer vicinity.

At his return to the Guild, he then had learned about Lord Elben's malaise, hence realizing that when he'd seen Sonea, she was already past her lecture time. It was then that a first suspicion had surfaced, though he didn't quite believe that it could have slipped his attention that she knew about the Spring. After all, Akkarin himself went there every now and then when seeking a refuge, far away from prying eyes, and he'd never noticed her lingering magical presence there before, even though he usually was so much aware of it.

Annoyance swept across his face at the thought that he could have missed something that important. His nightly activities seemed to really start getting to him, clouding his usually so overly alert senses. Akkarin rested his palm heavily against the edge of the wine cabinet, his eyes closing and his chest heaving with a heavy sigh. This last servant had been especially hard to track down; and even harder to defeat. His opponents grew stronger, and their more frequent appearance made it harder for him to recover his strength.

His gaze flickered towards the top of the stairs, where his Novice had vanished out of his sight mere seconds ago. Never before had she looked at him like this. Never before had she even faced him directly _at all_. He couldn't help but question his earlier decision to act, for now, as if nothing had happend. Because now he was certain that something _had_ happened.

How much had she witnessed?

And how much of a threat did that impose?

Or -and he couldn't help the tiny spark of hope springing to life in his voided soul- or was it more of an opportunity to change things for the better?


	5. Chapter 5

_**Whoop there you go, finally the next chapter's ready! I don't want to whine, but after having this one halfway written I lost it on my laptop cause I was too dumb to hit "save" now and then, and rewriting it from scratch after that was just so-damn-hard, especially since it was around that time that I finalized the overall storyline in my head which left me kinda impatient on building it in the first place. I was never satisfied and rewrote the chapter again and again, editing here and there, not satisfied again, putting it aside over and over and argh... but now, here you are, finally! As I've menaced, this chapter is not that long again, but oh damn I love it just so much (fangirl-ism ensued at the end of the chapter ^_^) and I hope you will, too :D**_

_**As always, I'd be happy about any review, positive or constructive, that I can get!  
**_

**Chapter 5**

Sleep was leaving Sonea unusually reluctantly this morning. As she tried to struggle her way into waking, through the misty haze that clung so persistently to her mind, she somehow knew though that there was something she ought to remember; something of great importance that slipped away into cloudy nothingness each time she tried to take hold of the memory.

Groaning in frustration, she dragged her legs over the edge of her bed with some effort and rolled herself over into a sitting position, her head spinning slightly from the movement. Taking a moment for her circulation to adjust again, she sat still, hanging her head and trying to blink the sleepiness away.

Her weary state bewildered Sonea, since she couldn't seem to find an explanation for it. She never even felt that tired the mornings after Regin and the other novices ambushed her. Feeling nothing but exhausted, those nights were actually the ones she slept best since she fell asleep instantly, her overtiredness even leaving her sweetly oblivious to the nightmares that otherwise occupied her dreams frequently ever since becoming a prisoner at the High Lord's Residence. Nightmares that usually consisted of fear, loss, and blood. Lots of blood. Sonea shuddered and pushed away the memories before they had a chance to really manifest themselves in her consciousness.

Nightmares…

Her head lifted gradually as understanding started to dawn.

Nightmares.

The High Lord.

Slowly, the fogginess raised from her mind and revealed pictures of his sleeping, yet painfully twisted features. Of his worn out expression when he'd received her in the guestroom. Her slender form betrayed her with yet another shudder, and her breath came out in a huff, now remembering how she'd twisted and turned in bed for most of the night, her mind ready to explode with questions and doubts she'd been pointlessly turning over and over again.

Was the High Lord weaker than she'd expected?

Could she dare challenging him, then?

Or –and that question bugged her most, though she couldn't even quite put a finger on why that thought had even surfaced- was he not as bad as she'd expected?

What had he been doing the last few nights?

What had he been doing up at the Spring?

Did he know that she'd been there?

And if yes, what consequences would that bring upon her?

She sighed and closed her eyes again, shaking her head weakly from side to side. There's no point in starting this all over again, she reasoned with herself. It had already cost her a good night's sleep. Thinking about it, she found it to be a miracle that she'd even fallen asleep after all.

But for now, she had to focus on the day ahead. Tough Warrior Skills lessons were awaiting her, and the High Lord was sure to be questioning her on her progress tonight.

It was only then that the true significance of her situation, which sleep had so mercifully erased from her memory, finally sank in again:

It was a Firstday.

She would be dining with the High Lord tonight.

It felt as if it cost her all of her energy to push herself up from the bed, her heavy heart weighing her down. She knew with cold certainty that she'd find it almost impossible to concentrate on classes today.

* * *

"And how has _your_ day been?"

In the silence that ensued, Sonea's question hung between them like a thick curtain spanning across the table. The High Lord's fork hung uselessly mid-air between his plate and mouth, and though his face seemed to be as flat and smooth as ever, she read a hint of puzzlement in his expression.

Now that Sonea managed to look at her Guardian directly (though she still avoided meeting his eyes; their piercing black depth still was beyond frightening), she found that it wasn't that hard to read his moods after all. She had experienced that last night already, at their first meeting after the Spring, and also through the half an hour for which their weekly dinner had been taking place up to now.

There were subtle changes to the set of his lips, to the wrinkles around his eyes; even to the tone of his voice that gave away his opinion of her lessons and her tutors' teaching methods –something she'd been updating him on like every Firstday- in a way Sonea's been never aware of before, and she doubted even the High Lord himself was conscious of it.

And then, she had dared to ask this rash question. She couldn't even tell herself where it had come from all of a sudden.

"I take it there was a Meet to determine the budget assigned to Lord Davin's project of rebuilding the lookout today?" Sonea hastily managed to clarify. She had heard the whispered conversations concerning this topic spreading throughout the University, and the outcome of this Meet really interested her, after all.

The High Lord nodded slowly and finally lifted the fork to his mouth. He chewed deliberately, taking his time to reply, his Novice watching him cautiously all the while, her heart pounding inside her chest.

"The majority of the Guild agreed that a substantial funding of this project is more than justified. Thus, the rebuilding of the tower should be able to proceed quickly."

The High Lord delivered his reply as detached as ever, but Sonea clearly felt his approval of the Meet's outcome.

"You are in favor of this decision", she couldn't help but voice her observations. Her Guardian's gaze sharpened, and she quickly averted her eyes.

"Considering your social background, you must be well aware of the necessity to be able to defend oneself. Wouldn't you agree with me, Sonea?" His voice was quiet, but stern. Sonea swallowed. He had never addressed her upbringing before.

"Yes but… this is merely a lookout. There's no need for the Guild to defend itself, is there?"

She was annoyed to find her own voice shaking slightly. She knew that the High Lord would have detected that as well. She managed to glimpse up at him again and found him smiling grimly.

"Oh, you'd be surprised..."

Sonea was taken aback by the evident bitterness in his voice and quickly dropped her gaze yet again, resisting the urge to clear her throat from the lump which had suddenly formed in there.

With a soft clattering, her Guardian put down his cutlery.

"Anyways, I think it's time for you to return to your classes. I won't allow my favorite ever to be late. Did I make myself clear?"

His strict demeanor left no room for anything but obedience. She quickly scrambled to her feet, managed a hasty bow with a muttered "Good evening, High Lord", and hurried out of the dining room, a knot forming in her stomach at the thought that she was facing another night of avoiding Regin or becoming his victim yet again, should she fail.

* * *

Akkarin watched his Novice from the corner of his eye as she left the room, witnessing how her face fell shortly before her expression hardened again. And he knew what it was due. He was sending her from the safety of his realm back into the hell of Regin's tortures that were awaiting her down at the University. He sighed and closed his eyes, pinching the bridge of his nose. Not for the first time, he felt guilt washing over him. Who was he to make her suffer like this? He knew he could end these cruelties within the blink of an eye. Yet, selfish reasons had kept him from doing so up to now.

At the edge of his mind, he detected a picture of himself, sunken into his chair, looking horribly worn out and tired. Not High Lord-like at all. He sensed the feeling of concern that went along with this picture.

He opened his eyes again and found Takan standing next to the dining table, dinner tray ready at hand, watching him silently. His brows were set in a line that mirrored the concern Akkarin had felt through the blood stone his servant was wearing. Through the same channel, he now sent an intermingled mess of emotions to his friend; feelings he failed to put a name to at the moment:

Confusion about Sonea's straightforwardness he'd encountered today.

Insecurity about how he should deal with her obvious change of behavior.

Reluctance at the thought of what had caused those changes.

Bitterness with himself at what he was putting her through.

A quiet determination that nevertheless, he would have to keep it that way.

Still, uncertainty if he should continue to let her suffer from Regin's profanities just for his own benefit.

Takan nodded slowly, his eyes meeting those of his Master directly and without the slightest hint of fear. He understood.

"You wanted to make her strong, Master. Her strength has developed quickly enough. And," his voice grew softer there, "you wanted her to understand. Be assured that she's already more like you than you'd imagine."

Something inside Akkarin vehemently refused to accept the last of Takan's words. Still, he nodded curtly, his decision made. Tonight, he would put an end to Sonea's suffering.


	6. Chapter 6

_**I hope you'll enjoy reading this as much as I enjoyed writing this :D**_

**Chapter 6**

Not even a full second passed between her shield failing and the first stunstrike slamming into her body, leaving no time for Sonea to brace herself against the effect of the fierce attack. Gritting her teeth in order not to grant her tormentors the favor of emitting as much as the slightest sound of pain, she crumbled to her knees from the harsh impact and searing pain which flooded her entire being.

Stunstrike after stunstrike hit her, often from multiple of the nearly twenty sources at once; leaving no chance for the pain to subside but rather building it rapidly to an unbearable level where finally, Sonea felt the now already familiar disconnection of her brain from her body, detaching it from the agony shooting through her veins with merciful numbness, the only means that was left for her mind to protect its sanity.

Her body spasmed with each jolt that hit her, but she didn't feel the single blasts anymore, her system already too all-consumed by pain. She slumped back against the wall, her eyes glazed over and blankly staring at nothing, her vision blurred. She had learned the hard way that there was nothing she could do except to wait until it was over.

Something stirred at the edges of the mob surrounding her, and a small, clouded part of her brain wondered at that; usually nothing managed to distract her attackers' fierce determination. She blinked as she felt the frequency of the strikes lessen; so infinitesimally that most of Regin's gang didn't even realize, but since she could only make out the outlines of her surroundings she couldn't find the source of the alteration. She was sure though, that one or two novices must have stopped their attacks.

Her dazed wonder grew as more and more strikes ceased away, leaving only Regin and a few others standing closest to her continuing their assaults. A sick feeling settled in her stomach. Usually, they weren't done with her so soon. That could only mean that worse was about to come.

Then, the silhouettes surrounding her reluctantly started to part, forming a path through their midst leading straight towards her. As the last stunstrike faded away, all fell utterly silent.

Sonea looked up at a tall, black-robed figure approaching her. Then her eyes rolled back into her head, and she lost consciousness.

* * *

Outwardly, Akkarin appeared to be as aloof and self-composed as ever, but inside he was trembling with rage. It took him all his effort of will to keep his steps measured and controlled. He was taken aback by the sudden ferocity of his own emotions, seeing that he had watched this scene unfolding before his eyes several times before by now, convinced of its necessity even though it had pained him. The only explanation he could come up with was that the situation had changed completely with his personal involvement rather than the role of the secret spectator.

Had he allowed Takan access to his thoughts in this very moment, the perceptive servant and friend would have rightfully concluded though that his Master's change of heart was mostly due to the subtle change of perspective the High Lord and his Novice had just recently developed on each other. Still, the Sachakan would have been considerate enough not to point out to Akkarin how he was already craving Sonea's approval now that he'd gotten the slightest taste of the possibility; thus the Black Magician would have stayed oblivious to his own true motivations nevertheless.

Akkarin had deliberately decided not to use the secret passages in order to approach the gang, but they had been so absorbed in the cruel satisfaction of their attack that no one had noticed his appearance at first. He had stopped a few paces behind the brown-robed half-circle surrounding his Novice then, waiting and watching in silence, knowing that they would become aware of his presence eventually.

When the first novice had finally looked back at him, he had turned wax-pale from one instant to the next, frozen on the spot. His reaction was countered with the High Lord's grim satisfaction. He had watched as a chain reaction was set into motion; one novice after the other becoming aware of his presence, the color draining from their faces, their expressions twisting with one and the same emotion: Fear.

Then, the High Lord had slowly started moving towards them and as one, they had shuffled away, letting him pass between them until even the last novice –which, he had realized with just a hint of amusement, had been Regin- had noticed his approach.

Now he was towering over the sunk down body of his Novice, and he felt a pang of guilt, sympathy and more emotions he couldn't place at the moment as he took in her pitiable sight. Without a word, he crouched down and scooped her up into his arms. Then, with one fluid movement, he stood again and turned, his face an expressionless mask except for his dangerously scorching black eyes that burned into each single novice in turn, leaving them with cold certainty that their victim's Guardian would remember each and every one of them.

He left Regin for last. The novice dropped his gaze immediately, but the High Lord mercilessly let the seconds tick by as he continued to stare down at him coldly. It wasn't until Regin was writhing with discomfort that Akkarin finally straightened his shoulders, adjusted the weight of Sonea's lifeless body in his arms and wordlessly strode through the small crowd again, down the corridor and towards the exit of the University.

* * *

A soothingly cool gust of wind made Sonea stir and, with a weak groan, she opened her eyes again. Her Guardian's face filled her vision, from her perspective illuminated in a strange angle by the small globe light flowing above his head as he moved through the silken darkness of the night air surrounding them.

Unlike this morning, she was immediately aware of the recent events.

He had saved her.

She felt a mixture of confusion and wonder at that thought.

Why?

It seemed so unlikely to her, she had never even thought of the possibility.

The High Lord glanced down at her, obviously aware that she'd regained consciousness. She felt the cool touch of his long, pale fingers on her cheek and tensed involuntarily at the faint trickle of magic leaking from them, anticipating something different from the ordinary Healing magic; something darker, colder… Black Magic, precisely.

Her eyes widened slightly in astonishment as she realized that she couldn't feel a difference. She relaxed into his arms once more as the Healing magic soothed the last remnants of pain and the worst of her exhaustion away. She witnessed that faint, amused half-smile tugging at the edge of her Guardian's lips as he raised his eyes and looked ahead again. He had obviously gauged her reactions correctly. Suddenly, she felt very stupid and awkwardly rested her temple against the surprisingly soft material of his black robes, hiding her face. What had she expected, really?

The High Lord was ascending the steps to his Residence now, and with a soft creak, the door opened. She thought she'd caught a fleeting glimpse of Takan's presence as they entered the guest room, but they were climbing the stairs to her room already before she could be sure.

Again, the door to her bedroom opened silently and the High Lord stepped inside, gently putting her down onto the bed. Still somewhat dazed from exhaustion, she watched as he sat down on the edge and took off her shoes one by one, then stood and pulled the blankets up around her before straightening again.

For a brief moment, he looked down at her and she looked up at him.

"Sleep now, Sonea. You need it."

His voice was soft, almost close to a whisper. She knew that he was right. She already felt her eyelids turning heavier, her breathing slowing down…

But as he turned to leave, she knew that there was something nagging at her, something she needed to know before sleep would manage to catch up with her.

* * *

Akkarin moved silently towards the door of his Novice's bedroom; his hand already brushed the handle when her barely audible voice made him freeze.

"_Why_, High Lord?"

He instantly knew what she was asking.

Not why he'd saved her tonight.

Not why it had taken him that long to do so.

Not why he had allowed Regin to torment her at all.

No, she was asking the one question he could never answer to her:

Why was he practicing Black Magic?

_If only I could tell you._

The words were already on his tongue, but he managed to swallow them down again just in time. No, he could not destroy her image of him. He had to uphold her fear; he had to foster it. It was a necessity, for the safety of Kyralia. There was no other way.

With frighteningly practiced ease, he fixed the cold, stern mask upon his features before he turned to face her again.

"Good night, Sonea."

And as silently as a shadow, he was gone from her room.


End file.
